Road signs that can detect if the driver is on the phone

Norfolk County has deployed four signs that remind drivers of good habits.

To prevent motorists from calling while driving, Norfolk County, England, decided to test a new technology developed by Westcotec. Technology can detect the use of the phone in cars. Like signs indicating the speed of motorists, the signs will encourage drivers to change their habits.

Westcotec's system consists of an antenna that captures the different standard mobile signals (2G, 3G, 4G) which will then send the information to an LED display panel installed further down the road. When the antenna detects a radio signal from a car, the panel turns on and displays an image to remind drivers to focus on the road, not their phone screen.

Users using Bluetooth will not be affected because Westcotec says that their device will make the difference between Bluetooth signal and mobile signals. Logic, given that the British government allows the use of the phone if the user's hands are free to hold the steering wheel

Westcotec states that the four panels installed in Norfolk are there for purely informative and preventive purposes. The system will use the statistics it will collect only to see if the trend is changing. Norfolk County has announced the introduction of four additional panels next month. However, there is some doubt as to the effectiveness of the device since the system can not tell the difference between the driver's and the pbadengers' telephones …